Now I definitely remember Adams first as an 80s rock star, though he did have big hits in the 90s too. What I have read from the guys over at Stuck In the 80s, Adams considers himself much more than an 80s artist. That may be true, but like I said, I will always remember the 80s.

Bryan Adams would really get noticed after his 1983 triple-platinum album Cuts Like a Knife was released. This would begin a string of 5 straight platinum albums for Adams from 1983 through 1996. His next album, 1984's Reckless, is one of the iconic pop albums of the 80s in my opinion. Reckless would go 5x platinum and hit #1 on the Billboard album chart. Six singles were released from the album and all six would reach top 15 or higher on the Billboard Hot 100 which at that time was a feat only previously accomplished by Michael Jackson's Thriller. That is quite impressive and all six of those songs made my personal top 10 which is coming up. 1987's Into the Fire album would be his last of the 80s decade and achieved triple-platinum status.

Here is OLD SCHOOL'S TOP 10 BRYAN ADAMS SONGS FROM THE 80s:

Honorable Mention. "Christmas Time" (1985) - I like Christmas music quite a bit, but mostly different interpretations of the traditional songs. One of the few non-traditional Christmas songs that I do like is this original single written by Adams and Jim Vallance. I did not find an actual video for the song, but here is a link where you can hear "Christmas Time". I thought it at least deserved an honorable mention.

10. "It's Only Love" with Tina Turner from Reckless (1984) [link to video of live performance]

9. "Cuts Like a Knife" from Cuts Like a Knife (1983)

8. "This Time" from Cuts Like a Knife (1983)

7. "Somebody" from Reckless (1984)

6. "Run to You" from Reckless (1984)

5. "Heat of the Night" from Into the Fire (1987) [link to video]

4. "Straight From the Heart" from Cuts Like a Knife (1983) [link to video]

3. "One Night Love Affair" from Reckless (1984) - Also included on the film soundtrack for one of my favorite 80s comedies Real Genius [link to video with song playing (sorry this was the best I could find)]

2. "Summer of ‘69" from Reckless (1984) - Here is a quote from Adams regarding the song titles meaning, "I think it's timeless because it's about making love in the summertime. There is a slight misconception it's about a year, but it's not. '69' has nothing to do about a year, it has to do with a sexual position." That's not necessarily why I have always liked it (and not sure if I even want to believe him), but thought it might end some controversy. [link to video]

1. "Heaven" from Reckless (1984) - Reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in June of 1985. Was actually first included on the 1983 soundtrack for the film A Night in Heaven (though the song is much much better than the movie). Adams did an acoustic version for MTV Unplugged which I think I like even more than the original. [link to original video]

There's my list. No big surprises except for maybe the order I put them in. As you hopefully noticed, there are links to videos on several of the songs so you can listen and remember them right now. Adams would go on to have a huge hit in 1991 with "Everything I Do (I Do It For You)" from the Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves soundtrack which would win him a Grammy. He would stay on the soundtrack kick joining Sting and Rod Stewart to record 1994's "All For Love" for the Three Musketeers movie and then solo for 1995's "Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman?" for the Don Juan De Marco soundtrack. All three songs would be #1 singles though none of them captured the magic of the 80s for me. Happy Birthday Bryan Adams and I hope you come to realize that being remembered for the 80s is not such a bad thing.

That's all I have for this issue of Kickin' it Old School. Thanks so much for reading. If you are interested in reading any of my other 80s related issues, please click there for a summary of those. If you are interested in reading more of my Top 10 lists, please click there for a summary. You can also always click on the Archives in the upper left hand column or use the Google Search Box at the top of the right hand column to find any other issues you may have missed. If you are a fan of Kickin' it, PLEASE CLICK ON THE FACEBOOK LOGO in the upper right hand column. This will take you to the Fan Page where I ask you to then click on "Become a Fan". Even if you are not a Facebook member yet, please consider joining and registering as a fan at that page. You can also now follow Old School on Twitter by clicking on the FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER LOGO also in the upper right hand column. This will take you the page and you can just click on the box that says "Follow". Have been sending daily 80s tweets out via Twitter, so be sure to follow me there. Let other 80s fans know about it as well! Peace and much love.

Check this out: Regular readers will know that I often share with you in this section signs that I find humorous. Here is a No Parking sign that I don't think I would take the chance to find out if the threat is real or a joke. What do you think?

Quote of the day: "Your happiness ultimately comes from the way you work, not where you work." -Russell Simmons